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For an overview of other labor organizations in the Fallout universe, see Labor union. |
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The Pittsburgh Union, or simply the Union, is a faction in the ruins of the Pitt. Pre-War, the Union was a steelworkers' union located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. As of 2104 (Fallout 76), they are a resistance confederation of Pittsburgh residents[1] at war with the raider group known as the Fanatics.
The most important of the local chapters is Local 42.
Background[]
The Union was a group of industrious survivors largely descended from the pre-War Pittsburgh Union Local 42. Uniting Pittsburgh workers, the local branch was centered around Pittsburgh Steel and was referred to as the "pride of the Union" by its leaders. It was one of the most important organizations fighting for workers' rights at the steelworks. Their employers were ramping up production quotas to unreasonable levels, without a comparable increase in wages. Coupled with the devastating toll of the ten-year long Sino-American War, the Union was ready to organize the first strike at the steelworks in over twenty years, led by Hal Caldwell. With the automation riots out in Appalachia, especially the labor wars in Beckley and Welch, the Union had the ear of the management and negotiations started in early October 2077.[2]
However, these negotiations were interrupted by the Great War. The Local 42 reorganized in the wake of the nuclear devastation, focusing on bringing order and stability to the wrecked Pittsburgh. Their goal was to use industrial strength to restore Pittsburgh to its former glory.[3]
These efforts culminated in the restoration of entire factories, including a steel mill and the foundry. The Union was thus able to produce pre-War quality equipment by recycling metal salvaged by field teams or provided by the mill, and remained the only group in the Pitt that had access to quality industrial production.[4]
However, the Union did not realize the threat of the Fanatics soon enough. The Union tried to coexist and merely make the Fanatics keep their distance, rather than engage in total war. Orders for fighters were to fire warning shots first, but these were routinely disregarded.[5] The combination of Hellcat Company support and viciousness pushed the Union back on the defensive. Even seemingly safe spaces turned out to be anything but: The unstable geology of the Trench provided some protection for the Sanctum, a major Union safehouse home to nearly forty people.[6] However, it was rooted out and fell to the Fanatics.[7] By October 2104, they lost the Mill and the Foundry to the Fanatics, and the situation soon worsened due to constant raids and the loss of one of the largest food stores of the Union.[8][9]
The Union became a resistance movement against the raiders' expansion. Anyone willing to help them against the Fanatics was welcome to join, resulting in an eclectic mix of aging steelworkers and factory hands, survivalists, and other strange bedfellows.[10] However, the Union needed outside help, especially the Local 42, led by Skippy Roerich, which took the brunt of the attacks. Against the wishes of the 42's officer, Hex, Skippy left the Pitt and traveled south, to Appalachia. Acting as a representative for the Union, he requested help from the Vault Dwellers of Vault 76 to help fight for the Union and repel the Fanatics from taking over the Pitt.[11]
The arrival of battle-hardened veterans of Appalachia and its many nightmares (the Scorched Plague, nuclear exchanges, the Blood Eagles, Blackburn, etc.) was a welcome surprise, especially since Hex did not believe that Skippy would stay true to his word.[12] It was a necessary help too, as the Union's back was against the wall by 2104, with only minor victories to stem the Fanatic onslaught. The veterans would come in handy, carrying out raids to gather supplies, free slaves, sabotage equipment, and gather intelligence.[13]
However, the Union was ultimately doomed to failure. By 2255, in part due to the mutations and neurological damage caused by the radiation and toxins around the city, the Pitt had fully devolved into a horrible, anarchic hellhole where the worst horrors were routinely dealt to its inhabitants and the city was dominated by the likes of rape gangs, torture squads, and worse.[Non-game 1] Any possible remnants of the Union would have been wiped out along with most of the rest of the Pitt's population when a scout force of the Brotherhood of Steel under Owyn Lyons swept through the city in an event later dubbed the Scourge. The relative clean slate of the city and resulting power vacuum would then be filled by former Brotherhood initiate Ishmael Ashur, who ruled the city with his own army of raiders.
Organization[]
The Pittsburgh Union was organized into individual cells, named Locals after the pre-War naming convention used by labor unions. The most prominent of these is the Local 42, led by Skippy Roerich and Hex, which controlled The Foundry before the Fanatic takeover. The loss of the Foundry made the 42 the most driven, and determined to retake what was lost, regardless of the opinion of other Locals in The Pitt.[8]
The Union is very organized and investigates any breaches of security to ensure they will not happen again, especially if the result is losing vital supplies.[14] Spies are also sent to infiltrate the ranks of the Fanatics (made possible by their disorganized nature), feeding vital intel to the Union and helping organize raids to secure supplies, information and other necessities.[15]
Despite the brutal war with the Fanatics, some Union members have tried to reform captured Fanatics, especially if they were their childhood friends.[16]
Ideology[]
After the Great War, the Union persisted and worked to make Pittsburgh into a safe refuge. Their fight against raiders and Fanatics in particular is motivated by an overarching goal of creating a peaceful tomorrow for Pittsburgh, rallying the sane denizens of the once great Steel City to fight against the forces of evil. Sacrifices, the Union believe, are necessary to achieve victory, and the dead and the lost are remembered for their service to victory.[17] Despite the inherent hostility and toxicity of the Pitt thanks to advanced levels of pollution and radiation, the Union believed that it was still their home, and still worth defending.
Members[]
- Ava Rose
- Bella Gerber
- Evan
- Hex
- Pat Gerber
- Skippy Roerich
- Wicker
- Union beggar
- Union fighter
- Union naysayer
- Union prisoner
- Danilo (indirectly)
Variants[]
Union fighter[]
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Union worker[]
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Union naysayer[]
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Union beggar[]
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Union prisoner[]
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Union sniper[]
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Union medic[]
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Union scavenger[]
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Union saboteur[]
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Notable quotes[]
When you feel that the walls are closing in around you, remember WHY WE FIGHT. Look to the left and right at your fellow human being, working in unison to achieve our goal of a peaceful tomorrow for Pittsburgh. Look out the window at the chaos below. We can push back the forces of evil, clean up our city, and restore order, but we need YOU to do it!
Remember the children, hoping for a better world to grow up in. Remember our friends who have lost their freedom to the dominant forces of evil. Remember the dead, who gave their lives so that we could emerge victorious!
The deck has always been stacked against us, but we never go down without a fight! So keep your chin up and soldier on to a BETTER PITTSBURGH!”— Union missiveAppearances[]
The Pittsburgh Union appear only in Fallout 76, introduced in the Expeditions: The Pitt update.
Behind the scenes[]
The naming of Local 42 is a reference to real-world local unions, which are, as the name implies, local branches of national unions. Their names are often accompanied by a number in the United States and Canada.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ Vault 76 Dweller: "What's all this about a Union?"
Skippy Roerich: "The Union is a sort of a...I guess you might call us a confederation, or a resistance. People banding together for defense. See, there's a group in the Pitt, calls themselves Fanatics. All they care about is conquest - they want the whole Pitt for themselves. They roll into your area, you either join them, they force you to labor for them, or they kill you. And they're coming for everybody. The Union's the only thing standing between them and their total conquest of the Pitt. As much as we're able, anyway."
(Skippy Roerich's dialogue) - ↑ The Foundry terminal entries; Foreman's terminal
- ↑ The Foundry terminal entries; Union new hire terminal, Welcome to the Union
- ↑ The Foundry terminal entries; Union new hire terminal
- ↑ Warning shots
- ↑ Bad omens
- ↑ Safe haven
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Industrial District terminal entries; Hex's terminal, The plan
- ↑ Industrial District terminal entries; Hex's terminal, Supplies
- ↑ Vault 76 dweller: "Tell me about the people in the Union."
Skippy Roerich: "Well, ya know, we used to be a trade union, before the war. A lot of us are holdovers from those days. Old factory hands, sticking together now like we did then. But we take all kinds, so long as they share the goal of winning back our foul city and making it fair again. That mix makes us a rowdy bunch, but it's also our secret sauce. Our eclectic minds think of things our enemies wouldn't imagine. So we stay one step ahead. Or even one inch ahead. But that's enough to keep us in the game."
(Skippy Roerich's dialogue) - ↑ Vault 76 dweller: "Who are these allies?"
Orlando: "They call themselves the Union. Something of a resistance movement, I understand, against more aggressive forces. One of their representatives is currently staying with us, a Mr. Skippy Roerich. Delightful man."
(Orlando's dialogue) - ↑ Industrial District terminal entries; Hex's terminal, Help is on its way
- ↑ Vault 76 dweller: "Tell me more about what I'd be doing, first."
Skippy Roerich: "The Union's back's against the wall. We're doing our best to hold off the Fanatics, keep them from taking everything. Occasionally, we win some small victories, but not a lot. Got a couple situations back there right now where an extra hand might tip things in our favor, at least for now. I don't want to call it mercenary work, but I'm not gonna lie: you'll be going there to fight."
(Skippy Roerich's dialogue) - ↑ Stolen supplies
- ↑ Hex: "We have some people on the inside telling us the Fanatics are planning something big. If we can steal their detailed plans, that will be a big help in the coming battles. Take a look for safes. Crack 'em open and snatch those plans for me."
(Hex's dialogue) - ↑ Getting through
- ↑ Union Missive
Non-game
- ↑ Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition p.43-44:
"Pitt Raiders
Pitt Slaves
Trogs
Wildmen
Following the Great War, survivors established a settlement on the remains of a city at the confluence of rivers. The rivers seem to provide a clear resource, and enough of the city was cleared by the bombs that a new settlement could be established. However, radioactive material and unidentified mutagens mixed into the groundwater, causing it to become slightly mutagenic and highly carcinogenic. As a result, the people in the new settlement began to change ever so slightly.
The changes were subtle, not nearly to the degree of the Super Mutants or the various Wasteland creatures, but over the next 140 years, it became undeniable that something was affecting the people of The Pitt. Starting from the first few years, children were often born with strange growths or extra vestigial limbs. The mutations never went far beyond the occasional hunchback or cleft palate, but it wasn't long before the vast majority of the residents of The Pitt developed some sort of physical deformity in their lifetimes. Although many children were born 'clean,' the older they got, the more likely that a problem would develop.
The most disturbing change that the environment caused was not nearly as noticeable as the physical deformities. The infected water and poisoned sky began to cause neurological damage to those exposed to it. People became more hostile, violent, and short-tempered; they became known as 'Wildmen.' Their emotions became out of control, and their actions often teetered on primal. In severe cases, mutated humans devolved into hunched, savage beasts nicknamed 'Trogs.' Over the first 50 years, The Pitt quickly degenerated into a dangerous den of murderers and rapists; even cannibalism was not uncommon. The only loyalty was in strength, and the only organization was between those who were strong enough to control others and those who were controlled."
(Fallout 3 Official Game Guide faction profiles)
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